A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland , or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland . Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can be elected while still a barrister (usually, but not always, King's Counsel in the UK or Senior Counsel in Ireland), in recognition of the contribution that the barrister has made to the life of the Inn or to the law. Others become benchers as a matter of course when appointed as a High Court judge . The Inn may elect non-members as honorary benchers – for example, distinguished judges and lawyers from other countries, eminent non-lawyers or (in the English Inns) members of the British Royal Family , who become known as "Royal Benchers" once elected.
13-425: Robert Francis may refer to: Robert Francis (barrister) (born 1950), British barrister specialising in medical law Robert Francis (musician) (born 1987), American singer/songwriter and producer Robert Francis (poet) (1901–1987), American poet Robert Francis (actor) (1930–1955), American actor Robert Francis (writer) (1909–1946), French writer, winner of
26-561: A barrister since 1973 and became a Queen's Counsel in 1992. He is a Recorder (part-time Crown Court judge) and authorised to sit as a deputy High Court Judge . He is a governing Bencher of the Honourable Society of the Inner Temple , where he has chaired its Education and Training Committee. He appeared as a barrister in inquiries for various NHS scandals: He chaired various independent inquiries: On 27 November 2013, it
39-501: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Robert Francis (barrister) Sir Robert Anthony Francis KC (born 4 April 1950) is a British barrister . He specialises in medical law, including medical and mental health treatment and capacity issues, clinical negligence and professional discipline. He has appeared as a barrister for and chaired several high-profile inquiries into medical controversies/scandals. On 21 May 2024,
52-588: The 1934 Prix Femina Bobby Francis (born 1958), former ice hockey head coach Bob Francis (radio presenter) (1939–2016), Australian radio presenter and talk back host Bob Francis (referee) (born 1942), New Zealand rugby union referee and mayor Robert Francis (politician) , British politician and hotelier Robert Francis (MP) , member of parliament for Staffordshire , c.1400 See also [ edit ] All pages with titles beginning with Robert Francis All pages with titles containing Robert Francis [REDACTED] Topics referred to by
65-601: The Professional Conduct and Complaints Committee). The governing structure of King's Inns dates from the sixteenth century and are composed of "Benchers". Originally, the benchers were composed of the Lord Chancellor, judges and senior barristers. Today, benchers include elected Bar Benchers, Judicial Benchers (includes all judges of the Superior Courts) and Honorary Benchers and they have the power to conferring
78-692: The UK Government announced that Francis had been appointed as the Interim Chair of the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA). Robert Francis was educated at Uppingham School , a boys' independent boarding and day school in the market town of Uppingham in Rutland , followed by the University of Exeter , where he qualified as Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) (Hons). Francis has been
91-533: The argument and stood outside the bar. The most senior barristers were permitted to sit on the bench at moots. This third class of barristers became known as "Benchers" or "Masters of the Bench". The practices and regulations vary from Inn to Inn, but the benchers are the ultimate governing body of the relevant Inn. The benchers govern the finances of the Inn, and they alone have the authority to admit students, to call students to
104-644: The bar , and to elect other benchers. Today, the benchers of the four English Inns have common standards agreed with the Bar Council . They have the formal power to discipline members of their Inn by suspending or expelling them from membership of the Inn, and by disbarring them. Disciplinary functions are now shared with the Council of the Inns of Court, the Bar Standards Board and its Complaints Committee (formerly known as
117-526: The degree of Barrister-at-Law, suspending or disbarring barristers and dealing with disciplinary matters. The terms bencher and treasurer are in use by the legal profession in Canada . A bencher in the Canadian context is a member of the board of directors of a provincial law society. Most benchers are lawyers, but in some provinces there are also lay benchers who represent the public interest. In some provinces
130-408: The same term This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Robert_Francis&oldid=1243161769 " Category : Human name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
143-605: Was announced that he had become the president of the Patients Association . On 4 June 2014, it was announced that he had become a non-executive board member of the Care Quality Commission . On 14 June 2014, it was announced that he had been knighted in the 2014 Birthday Honours . On 24 June 2014, it was announced that he would be chairing an NHS whistleblowing review, the Freedom to Speak Up Review . The report
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#1732858886124156-459: Was once dependent purely on seniority (or auncienty ), this is no longer the case. The Treasurer is now elected. Two Readers are also elected each year. Historically, the most junior student barristers were only permitted to watch moot court trials and stood within the bar of the moot courtroom. More qualified barristers (known in England as "outer" or "utter" barristers) were permitted to join
169-465: Was published on 11 February 2015. On 19 September 2018, it was announced that he would be the new Chair of Healthwatch England . On 14 June 2021, it was announced that he would lead a compensation framework study for those impacted by Contaminated Blood . Bencher One member of each Inn is the Treasurer , a position which is held for one year only. While succession to the post of Treasurer
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